Marrying the Soft-hearted Villain

Yuan Jue's voice was actually very soft. All the aloof words he intended to say, in his semi-conscious state, turned into instinctive "awoos."

Oddly, his voice wasn't the cute, puppy-like kind. Instead, it was deep and husky, carrying the alluring quality of a mature male. Moreover, because most of his focus was on suppressing the demonic blood within him, his voice sounded hoarse.

These incongruous elements combined unexpectedly, creating a heart-stirring rhythm.

Ruan Qiuqiu struggled to support the wolf, trying to draw some spiritual energy from her dantian, which had been depleted earlier that day and hadn't yet recovered, hoping to ease his pain.

But the small amount of spiritual energy she managed to squeeze out barely reached the big gray wolf before he seemed to wake up.

He half-opened his crimson eyes, snowflakes clinging to his long lashes.

The wolf bared his sharp canines at Ruan Qiuqiu, his thin lips almost bitten raw. "Awoo! (No need.)"

Yuan Jue could sense his little wife's exhaustion and didn't want her to expend any more of her precious spiritual energy on him.

Ruan Qiuqiu "…?" What was wrong with Mr. Gray Wolf? Was he acting spoiled because of the pain?

Qiuqiu, who had never been the target of wolfish pampering, interpreted this in a very literal way. With a soft sigh of resignation, she lifted her other arm as high as she could and gently stroked the wolf's head.

"It's okay, it's okay," Ruan Qiuqiu soothed. "It won't hurt soon."

Wolf "…"

He felt that his little wife had misunderstood something. He tried to explain while maintaining his aloof wolf persona, but all that came out were wolfish sounds, a series of "awoos" that only made Qiuqiu more distressed and convinced of her misinterpretation.

This strange communication continued until Yuan Jue lost consciousness.

Of course, in the second before falling unconscious, Mr. Gray Wolf, unable to "reason" (awoo) with his Qiuqiu, resorted to baring his little fangs at her repeatedly.

This achieved a remarkable "deterrent" effect.

Ruan Qiuqiu was "terrified" and could only relieve her "stress" by repeatedly stroking the fine fur on his pointed ears.

If his weight and their proximity hadn't prevented it, she would have even wanted to touch his big tail.

Why hadn't she noticed before how spoiled Mr. Gray Wolf could be?

Although she knew the wolf was likely delirious from pain, she… shamefully found the semi-conscious wolf incredibly endearing.

This thought made Ruan Qiuqiu laugh.

Her heart ached with tenderness. As she helped the wolf towards the willow plank bed, a mischievous thought crossed her mind—

Should she tell Mr. Gray Wolf, when he woke up, that he had been speaking in wolf language while semi-conscious?

Ruan Qiuqiu, pale-faced, anticipated his reaction.

Would he maintain a calm facade while inwardly churning with emotions, or would he simply freeze, blushing and speechless?

As she pondered this, the rustling of branches sounded in the distance.

Ruan Qiuqiu snapped out of her reverie and became alert.

"It's me." Granny Ruyi emerged from the shadows, picked up a fallen torch, and lit it with a flick. "Don't be afraid."

A warm, slightly dazzling light flared, causing Ruan Qiuqiu to squint before quickly adjusting.

Slightly embarrassed, she said to Qing Ruyi, "Granny Ruyi, I apologize. My husband probably mistook you for a monster earlier."

Qing Ruyi didn't seem bothered. She helped Ruan Qiuqiu lay the unconscious Yuan Jue on the willow plank bed and then guided Ruan Qiuqiu to sit beside him.

"Granny will take you back." Qing Ruyi handed the torch to Ruan Qiuqiu, smiling. "I initially doubted your husband's reliability, but now he has, more or less, passed my test."

Ruan Qiuqiu "…" When did Granny Ruyi decide to test Mr. Gray Wolf? She had no idea.

Qing Ruyi seemed to read her thoughts and stroked her chin. "Ahem, if you could guess my plans, how could I still be your Granny?"

Ruan Qiuqiu "…." She was momentarily speechless.

But Granny Ruyi meant well. Ruan Qiuqiu curved her lips into a smile, lowered her gaze, and looked at her wolf in the gently swaying torchlight amidst the falling snow.

He still looked troubled, his dark brows furrowed like an unbreakable knot. The flickering firelight cast uneven shadows from his long lashes onto his pale cheeks, the spreading black spots more numerous than before.

Based on what Granny Ruyi had told her about the demonic transformation stages, her wolf should now be in the mid-stage.

Ruan Qiuqiu looked at his wolf ears, drooping listlessly against his black hair, and recalled his trembling "awoos." Her heart ached.

As she channeled another sliver of spiritual energy into Mr. Gray Wolf, he let out another soft "awoo."

Earlier, without Granny Ruyi present, Ruan Qiuqiu couldn't understand wolf language.

Now that Granny Ruyi was back, Ruan Qiuqiu asked, "Granny Ruyi, do you know what my husband just said?"

Qing Ruyi understood, but her expression turned odd after Ruan Qiuqiu's question.

She didn't answer immediately. Ruan Qiuqiu assumed Mr. Gray Wolf had merely uttered sounds like "mm" or "uh" to express his pain and didn't press further. Instead, she continued to convert the surrounding spiritual energy, trying to alleviate his condition.

Moments later, they reached the vicinity of their cave. After helping Ruan Qiuqiu get the wolf inside, Granny Ruyi looked at Yuan Jue lying on the stone bed and finally said, "Not me."

Ruan Qiuqiu was puzzled. Granny Ruyi continued, "That's the answer to your question about what the little wolf cub said."

"Not me?" Ruan Qiuqiu murmured, stunned.

Granny Ruyi nodded. "In the mid-stage of demonic transformation, he'll be trapped in painful memories, but he's not entirely unconscious. Just talk to him more."

Qing Ruyi sighed. "Back then, I was constantly plagued by nightmares of my face being ravaged by demonic markings. I couldn't control my killing intent, which led to the current situation."

"This little wolf cub, Yuan Jue, is more talented and better at suppressing his desires than I thought. Perhaps, as you said, he's worth my gamble." Granny Ruyi smiled and sniffed the air. "I didn't expect you to have some spirit stones in your cave. Did you dig them up with Xiaoyu before? You have good luck, child."

Ruan Qiuqiu scratched her cheek, too preoccupied with Mr. Gray Wolf's words, "Not me," to think about anything else. She didn't hide anything from Granny Ruyi but subtly indicated they didn't have extra spirit stones. She stood up to pour some hot water for Granny Ruyi, who had kindly escorted them back.

Granny Ruyi waved her hand, declining the offer. She patted Qiuqiu's shoulder and said with a smile, "Granny will go now. You should rest well. Tomorrow…"

Qing Ruyi glanced at Yuan Jue lying on the stone bed and sighed. "Tomorrow at noon, I'll come back to get you."

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